Cardiology Nurse Career Guide and Counseling

Question: Is a NICU nurse also considered a neonatal cardiology nurse? I think that NICU nurses do need to know everything about a neonate's cardiac and respiratory needs, so NICU nurses could be called neonatal cardiology nurses, right? Or would neonatal cardiology nurses work more with neonatal cardiologists?

Answer: The children's hospital I am affiliated with does not have specific neonatal cardiology nurses. There is simply NICU nurses and Pediatric Intensive Care (PICU). If the baby is less than 30 days old, regardless if it has cardiac issues, is under the care of the NICU RNs, who care for babies with all kinds of conditions including cardiac. The PICU is for any child from 30 days to 18 years and would also include cardiac intensive care patients. There is a separate pediatric cardiology unit for 30 days to 18 years who are non-critical. They also take a variety of regular medical / surgical overflow patients on a regular basis so it isn't only cardiac patients. So in a nutshell, no, at least where I work, there is not a separate, specific NICU cardiology RN.

Question: Does anyone know what the average starting pay for a Nurse Practitioner would be? I am moving from NYC and will have three years of experience as a cardiology nurse and NP. I know I will be taking a pay cut with the move, but am just wondering what is realistic. Can anyone help?

Answer: Around $70,000 is the norm

Question: A professional nurse can make ultrassound or just cat scan and mamografia? I'm nurse and I'm planing to go to USA to work in the area of cardiology and I wanna know if a nurse can make ultrassound or just doctor can make it? Thanks...

Answer: Typically nurses do not perform these jobs and unless they received additional training an education they would not be allowed to.

Question: How do you get started when you are going into a field of cardiology? I'm starting college Fall of 2008 (Basically i start Jan. 2009) and I'm going in for being a Nursing Assistant, but planning on taking a class on cardiology (since this my my NOW major). How do you get started in this field? (Cardiology)

Answer: Cardiology is a subspecialty of Internal Medicine. It requires a 4-year college degree, a 4-year medical school degree, 3 years of residency training, and (usually) 3 years of fellowship training. A nursing assistant is a completely different thing, requiring only 2 years of college education. If you want to be a nurse's aide on a cardiology floor, I would imagine this requires little additional training, most of which would be provided for you by your employer.

Question: Can you specialize in more than one medical specialty or subspecialty in graduate school for nursing? I would like to be either: -Neonatal Cardiology Nurse -Pediatric Oncology Nurse I am wondering if Neonatology is a subspecialty of Pediatrics and if I could even specialize in both Pediatric and Internal Medicine subspecialties(oncology and cardiology) nursing at one time. I hope someone can help!

Answer: You are a bit confused. As a bedside nurse you get a general nurse education and specialize on the job--you can work in any specialty you want. In graduate school (nursing) you either pursue a clinical nurse specialist or a nurse practitioner route (for clinical). You are not really s a true bedside nurse at this point. The NICU route is entirely separate from the peds route (it is not a subspecialty). If you did peds (general or the PNP) you could possible get on the job further education in oncology or cardiology. You would not be able to do both at the same time ( nor would you want to), there is not enough time in the day to become fully familar with two divergent specialties. So if you want to be a bedside nurse in those field, you get your RN & go to work in that area (no masters). If you want to be a nurse practitioner (masters/DNP) you would have to chose first of all between neonatology or pediatrics, do the program & then specialize further from there. In the childrens hospital I trained at (Childrens LA); there was no neonatal cardiology. All heart patients went to a special pediatric cardiology unit--so keep that in mind.

Question: What are the Pros and Cons of working in the PACU? I am a Cardiology nurse wanting to transfer to the PACU in the near future. Just wanted to know what your thoughts are on the PACU.........Is it a good move?

Answer: Very good move. Better working conditions. Better people to work with. You made the right choice.

Question: Is it too late to become a doctor? I turn 29 y-o in a week. I have been a cardiology nurse (RN) for almost 7 years. I work with doctors very closely and I believe I could do alot of what they do. Is it too late for me to become a doctor now?

Answer: As long as you have a bachelor's degree from a 4 year university, taken the required pre-med courses, and taken the MCAT, you can apply to medical school. However, to have a decent shot your GPA must be 3.5 or greater with MCAT score of at least 30. Just keep in mind that if you're interested in becoming a cardiologist (which I assume since you are already familiar with the field as an RN) you will have to apply for internal medicine residency training which is another 3 years after graduating from med school (4 years). Then you will have to apply for cardiology fellowship which is another 3 years at least. Thus you will be ~39 years old when you are done. There are people who go to medical school later than you however. Good luck. Hope this helps.

Question: Is it possible to become a neonatal nurse as well as a pediatric nurse? Considering you have taken the time to become certified in NICU training and have taken the proper schooling seperate from neonatal nursing to become a pediatric nurse...I know this sounds like a whole lot of work and years in school, but I am not sure if I can choose which area I would like to work most: neonatal cardiology nursing as well as NICU, or pediatric oncology nursing. I would also like to know if once you complete schooling to become a NICU nurse, are you considered specialized in pediatric intensive care nursing as well?

Answer: The best thing that you can do to decide which type of nursing you would like to get is by choosing to do these in your rotational blocks, so that you're able to see what you would like to do the most.

Question: Cardiologists & Cardiology nurses and aids- What are you telling your patients with heart problems? Regarding swine flu and heart patients: I should be just calling my cardiologist's office, but I don't want to get too hyped up about this, yet. I have dilated cardiomyopathy, was given 6 months to live 3 years ago, my heart is very weak with a low ef of 10%, but I am otherwise healthy, and young (33), but I am already on borrowed time. Should I be thinking about avoiding large crowds and going out in public? Is it likely that I would not survive swine flu with my weak heart? What are you telling your patients? The first case has been confirmed in my state..by the way.

Answer: One precaution you should take every year, of course, is to get your flu shot. Influenza vaccines reduce the risk of dying if you have heart disease. While no vaccine is currently available for the swine flu, there is some evidence that a certain amount of protection from swine flu might result for people who have had their yearly flu shots. If you live in an area where the flu is not at epidemic proportions, normal precautions are called for. Wash your hands frequently with soap and water, or a hand sanitizer. And try to avoid contact with people who appear actively sick.

Question: Anyone work on a cardiology ward? I'm a nursing student and my next placement is on a cardiology ward. Just wondering what it's like? I suppose it depends on the hospital etc. But I'm quite anxious about it...I'm scared there will be a lot of people dying! Sounds stupid because obviously people can die on any ward! Any information or personal experiences would be good :)

Answer: Yes, I am a Cardiology Nurse. I work on CCU. It's busy and gets quite hectic, but the Nurse:patient ratio is better. Obviously you will see acute cases and maybe even death. What year are you in? Just remember that every Nurse on that ward has been in the same position you are in when they were students themselves, it's nothing to worry about. Nothing is expected of you. You are there to learn and observe. If you do see anything you are unsure about or anything that upsets you, do tell your mentor. After the first few days, you'll get used to it very quickly. Feel free to drop me a line if you need more questions answered.